2019-05-11

Headlines:

From Al Jazeera, Associated Press, BBC News, Reuters, The Globe and Mail, New York Times, and Wired

Houthi rebels begin withdrawal from key ports in Yemen – (Associated Press)
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Saturday began a long-delayed withdrawal of forces from the port facility in the key city of Hodeida, the group said, following the terms of a December…

Potential sale of shuttered GM plant clouded with doubt – (Associated Press)
The fate of a shuttered General Motors plant in Ohio remains very much up in the air even after a tweet from President Donald Trump heralded the potential sale of a factory he has shown an intense…

‘We need to correct our mistakes’: ANC wins S Africa election – (Al Jazeera English)
Provisional results show ANC keeping power with 57.5 percent of vote, but outcome is its worst-ever electoral showing.

Texas boys ranch moves forward as more men allege abuse – (Associated Press)
DALLAS (AP) — When Allan Votaw stepped onto Cal Farley’s Boys Ranch in Texas in 1957, the 5-year-old hoped he and his two brothers — ages 3½ and 6 — had found a home. Instead, the now-66-year-old…

Uber, Lyft losses keep competitors at bay – (Associated Press)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A fare war between Uber and Lyft has led to billions of dollars in losses for both ride-hailing companies as they fight for passengers and drivers.But in one way it has…

For Harris, memories of a warrior mother guide her campaign – (Associated Press)
NEW YORK (AP) — Speaking from the Senate floor for the first time, Kamala Harris expressed gratitude for a woman on whose shoulders she said she stood. In her autobiography, Harris interspersed…

Teva, other drug companies accused in sweeping U.S. price-fixing scheme: lawsuit – (Reuters)
U.S. states filed a lawsuit accusing 20 drug companies including Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc of a sweeping scheme to inflate drug prices – sometimes by more than 1,000 percent – and stifle competition for generic drugs, state prosecutors said on Saturday.

Gunmen attack hotel in Pakistan port city Gwadar – (Al Jazeera English)
Assailants storm Pearl Continental Hotel in seaside city, engage in battle with security forces, says official.

Trump has long seen previous US trade agreements as losers – (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s combative approach to trade has been one of the main constants among his often-shifting political views. And he’s showing no signs of backing off now,…

Democrat Warren confronts 2020 electability question head-on in Ohio – (Reuters)
At a veterans hall in the mostly white, working-class town of Chillicothe, Ohio, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren spoke to about 200 people on Friday about her plans to fight the opioid epidemic, Washington corruption and economic inequality.

Waterspout spotted in Singapore – (BBC News)
Witnesses posted images on social media showing the swirl near the Marina Bay Sands hotel.

North Carolina ‘bathroom bill’ sponsor bidding for US House – (Associated Press)
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina legislator best known as the architect of the state’s so-called bathroom bill three years ago is racking up contributions and endorsements as he runs in the…

Gunmen attack hotel in Pakistani port city of Gwadar: officials – (Reuters)
Gunmen attacked a hotel in Pakistan’s southwestern port city of Gwadar on Saturday and were battling security forces, officials said.

Gunmen ‘attack hotel in Pakistan’ – (BBC News)
At least three attackers storm the hotel in Gwadar in Balochistan province, officials say.

Islamic State claims ‘province’ in India for first time after clash in Kashmir – (Reuters)
Islamic State (IS) claimed for the first time that it has established a “province” in India, after a clash between militants and security forces in the contested Kashmir region killed a militant with alleged ties to the group.

Self-impeach? Talk shifts toward Trump defiance of Congress – (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has introduced a new concept into the debate over President Donald Trump’s actions: “self-impeaching.”As Trump all but goads Democrats into…

Bayer says won’t tolerate unethical behavior as France probes Monsanto file – (Reuters)
Bayer said on Saturday it did not accept “unethical behavior” following a French investigation into a suspected file assembled by the German company’s seed making unit Monsanto to influence various personalities in France.

South Africa’s Ramaphosa targets reforms after election win – (Reuters)
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa led the African National Congress (ANC) to victory in Wednesday’s election, but a drop in its share of the vote underlines the challenge he faces restoring confidence in his party.

ANC keeps power in South Africa but scandals cost it votes – (Reuters)
The African National Congress retained control of South Africa’s parliament but its share of the vote fell, a rebuke from voters fed up with corruption scandals and racial inequalities that remain entrenched a generation after the party took power.

Chinese envoy says trade talks with US have not broken down – (Associated Press)
BEIJING (AP) — China’s leading envoy to trade talks in Washington says the failure to strike a deal in the tariffs war with the U.S. was “just a small setback” and negotiations will continue…

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From various sources

Chelsea Manning freed from jail, to appear before new U.S. grand jury – (The Jerusalem Post)

Iraq’s former PM Maliki joins chorus against US Iran policy – (The Jerusalem Post)
Maliki was the leader of Iraq during a period of intense sectarianism, when pro-Iranian forces were largely seen as increasing their hold on Baghdad.

China, U.S. to hold more trade talks as Trump ratchets up tariff threat | CBC News – (CBC News)
China and the United States have agreed to hold more trade talks in Beijing, Vice Premier Liu He said, as U.S. President Donald Trump ordered his trade chief to begin the process of imposing tariffs on all remaining imports from China.

Get in shape this summer with SurFIT – (Fox News)
SurFIT Long Island head instructor Elizabeth Maro shows the hosts how to get a workout in on dry land with surfing.

Occidental shareholders flex muscles after Anadarko deal controversy – (Financial Times)
Investors defy oil company’s board to demand governance change

May is Military Appreciation Month – (Fox News)
2019 military spouse of the year Holly Vega and 2018 military spouse of the year Krista Simpson Anderson say they were blown away by the award they received.

Who is Patrick Shanahan? – (Fox News)
Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Richard Newton says Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan will support President Trump’s agenda to secure the southern border.

Axios AM – (Axios)
Mike Allen, the world’s most-wired reporter, narrates the ten most important stories of the day. Daily

Using Spark to Prove 255-Bit Integer Arithmetic from Curve25519 – (Hacker News)

Israel Railways: A tale of failures across the board – (The Jerusalem Post)
Who is to be held accountable for the chaotic handling of the accumulating problems?

Devastated mum-to-be slams technology as gender surprise of her baby is ‘ruined’ – (Mirror)
A mum has been left feeling “low” after potentially having the gender of her unborn baby revealed to her

Video shows man threaten to kill everyone on board a Ryanair flight – (Daily Mail)
Holidaymakers had been travelling from Manchester to Gran Canaria on Saturday evening when the passenger launched a terrifying tirade. He said he would kill everyone as he was detained on board.

Houthi rebels begin withdrawal from key ports in Yemen – (Associated Press)
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Saturday began a long-delayed withdrawal of forces from the port facility in the key city of Hodeida, the group said, following the terms of a December…

The best Mother’s Day deals that you can buy last minute – (The Verge)
Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 12th in the US. If you haven’t yet gotten your mother a gift, there are several deals that you can check out. Some of these tech products are even available locally at retailers like Best Buy and Walmart.

The Jerusalem fast-train vs. the powerful media – (The Jerusalem Post)
During the six-month test period, early-adopter passengers on the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv train line got an insider look at the phenomenon of mind-setting through negative news.

Jerusalem by rail: What’s the latest on the capital’s light rail lines? – (The Jerusalem Post)
Last week in a dramatic move, CityPass announced its decision to not only not submit to the tender for the Blue and the Green lines, but to completely quit the entire project and leave Jerusalem.

Joe Biden on the issues, in under 500 words – (Axios)
The former vice president is 2020’s current frontrunner.

Warhammer: Chaosbane leans on an army of miniatures, but remains faithful to them – (Polygon)
Developers at Eko Software had a ready-made roster of bad guys to slaughter in Warhammer: Chaosbane, but also faced the challenge of animating and coloring them in a way true to the 35-year-old Warhammer Fantasy canon.

Ant McPartlin looks forlorn ahead of possible run-in with ex Lisa Armstrong – (Mirror)
The Britain’s Got Talent host could bump into his ex-wife at tomorrow’s BAFTA TV Awards, with them both nominated for prizes

Travelling by train up to 13 times more expensive than driving – (Daily Mail)
It may come as a surprise to motorists who’ve filled their tank on a motorway lately. But travelling by train is still up to 13 times more expensive than driving, analysis has found.

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All about Trump

China, U.S. to hold more trade talks as Trump ratchets up tariff threat | CBC News – (CBC News)
China and the United States have agreed to hold more trade talks in Beijing, Vice Premier Liu He said, as U.S. President Donald Trump ordered his trade chief to begin the process of imposing tariffs on all remaining imports from China.

Who is Patrick Shanahan? – (Fox News)
Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Richard Newton says Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan will support President Trump’s agenda to secure the southern border.

Potential sale of shuttered GM plant clouded with doubt – (Associated Press)
The fate of a shuttered General Motors plant in Ohio remains very much up in the air even after a tweet from President Donald Trump heralded the potential sale of a factory he has shown an intense…

U.S. farmers are cutting costs to cope with Trump’s trade war against China – (Axios)
Some farmers are going without health insurance and delaying crop sales to stay afloat.

Trump has long seen previous US trade agreements as losers – (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s combative approach to trade has been one of the main constants among his often-shifting political views. And he’s showing no signs of backing off now,…

Former White House counsel McGahn refuses to say Trump did not obstruct justice – (Axios)
The White House asked McGahn twice.

Donald Trump Spends Another Saturday Morning Rage Retweeting – (The Huffington Post)
Trump even resorted at one point to retweeting himself.

Self-impeach? Talk shifts toward Trump defiance of Congress – (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has introduced a new concept into the debate over President Donald Trump’s actions: “self-impeaching.”As Trump all but goads Democrats into…

Elizabeth Warren on the issues, in under 500 words – (Axios)
She has voted with Trump 13.5% of the time.

How Donald Trump lied his way onto the Forbes 400 richest people list | CBC Radio – (CBC News)
This week, the New York Times reported that Donald Trump’s businesses lost more than $1 billion between 1985 and 1994. Journalist Jonathan Greenberg says Trump conned him into getting on the Forbes 400, a list of America’s richest people.

Trump predicts he’ll face ‘SleepyCreepy Joe’ Biden in 2020, says ‘Crazy Bernie’ and others are ‘fading fast’ – (Google News)
“Looks to me like it’s going to be SleepyCreepy Joe over Crazy Bernie. Everyone else is fading fast!” he tweeted.

Rudy Giuliani says his controversial pro-Trump Ukraine visit is off – (Google News (Canada))
President’s attorney tells Fox News he will not go to Kiev but tells New York Times Democratic outrage is ‘ridiculous’

Rudy Giuliani Cancels His Trip to Ukraine, Blaming Democrats’ ‘Spin’ – (The New York Times)
President Trump’s personal lawyer was facing withering criticism from Democrats who accused him of seeking foreign assistance for the president’s re-election campaign.

Trump: It would be ‘appropriate’ for me to talk to DOJ about investigating Biden – (The Hill)
President Trump said Friday it would be “appropriate” for him to discuss opening an investigation into former Vice President Biden and his family with Attorney General William Barr.

Trump: It would be ‘appropriate’ for me to talk to DOJ about investigating Biden – (Google News)
President Trump said Friday it would be “appropriate” for him to discuss opening an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden and his family with Attorney General William Barr.

Rudy Giuliani says he is no longer traveling to Ukraine – (CBS News)
Democrats had denounced his plan to push Ukraine to open investigations that he hoped could benefit President Trump politically

AP FACT CHECK: Trump’s fog of misinformation on trade – (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump cast a fog of misinformation over the U.S. trade dispute with China, floating inaccurate numbers and skewed economic theories as big tariffs kicked in on…

Shanahan heads to Texas as Pentagon eyes longer-term support on Mexico border – (Reuters)
Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan will make his second trip to the U.S.-Mexico border on Saturday as the Pentagon looks to develop a longer-term plan to support President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

Here’s how Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s paid leave policy compares to Ivanka Trump-backed proposals – (Newsweek)
Ocasio-Cortez has a “strong” paid leave policy while Ivanka Trump’s are “much more problematic,” one advocate said.

Trump making big changes to national 4th of July celebration – (Google News)
The new event, to be called “A Salute to America,” will shift the fireworks launch to West Potomac Park and may include a possible address by Trump.

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